Bluffton High girls golf beats rivals Beaufort, Hilton Head

Sunday

With one starter sidelined by an injury, the Bluffton High girls golf team defeated rivals Beaufort and Hilton Head in an early-season matchup Thursday at Dataw Island Club.

Kylie Nizolek led the way for the Bobcats with a 33, the best round of the day, and Bluffton finished with a team score of 160. Hilton Head was 28 shots back at 188 and Beaufort came in at 248.

Bluffton's Kasidy Beckel followed with a 37, Kathryn Thorne had a 42, Rachel Wohn had a 48 and Molly Minasi had a 54. The Bobcats played without senior Brandi Hammonds.

Meredith Wipper led Hilton Head with a 39 and Jordan Yougdal shot 55 for Beaufort.

Bluffton was set to play in an 18-hole event Saturday at Golden Bear Golf Club on Hilton Head. The Bobcats will play in another 18-hole invitational tournament Monday in Aiken.

Bluffton volleyball posts victory

The Bluffton High volleyball team put a stop to its four-match losing streak Wednesday, defeating St. Vincent's Academy 3-1 on the road in Savannah.

Bluffton beat the Saints 25-23, 19-25, 25-19, 25-20, to improve to 3-5 for the season.

The Bobcats opened the season Sept. 4 with a 2-1 victory over Savannah Christian and a 2-0 loss to Glynn Academy (Ga.)

Bluffton then traveled to Atlanta for the Lovett Block Party, which brings together some of the top programs in the Southeast.

The Bobcats went 1-4 against Georgia schools Sept. 6-7 at Lovett. They beat Class AAAAAA Milton 2-1 and lost 2-1 to Lovett, 2-0 to North Cobb, 2-0 to Columbus and 2-0 to Lassiter.

Bluffton is competing in Georgia again this weekend at Glynn Academy's tournament in Brunswick. The Bobcats' home and SCHSL Region 8-AAAA opener is at 5:15 Tuesday against Summerville.

USCB soccer halts losing skid

The University of South Carolina Beaufort women's soccer team got back in the win column Thursday, blanking visiting Brewton-Parker (Ga.) 2-0 in a non-conference match at Fin Land Field.

Freshman Brittany Lorentz assisted on junior Steph Moldenhauer's goal in the 27th minute and scored off an assist from sophomore Jessica Tooley in the 71st as the Sand Sharks (2-3-1) snapped a three-game losing streak.

"It's nice to get back in the win column," USCB coach Ed Heberling said. "Although we didn't perform at our best, we were able to do enough to secure the win. We were able to dominate and dictate play but weren't able to connect all three levels of our team at times."

Even when things broke down, though, junior goalkeeper Chelsie Mummert was up to the challenge, making eight saves - including a handful of spectacular ones - to notch her second shutout of the season. Her best save came in the second half, when she had to dive to her left to stop a one-on-one chance from Barons leading scorer Holly Harrod.

"Throughout the game, Chelsie stepped up and made some great saves," Heberling said. "It was reminiscent of her play last season."

The Sand Sharks had several close calls before breaking through in the 27th minute. Lorentz dribbled up the right side and slotted a pass for Moldenhauer, who stepped past the defender and slotted a left-footed shot inside the right post.

Several more opportunities went by the wayside before USCB converted again, as Tooley took a pass from Moldenhauer, dribbled to the 18-yard line and laid the ball off for Lorentz, who blasted a left-footer inside the right post.

Moldenhauer and Lorentz each pulled even with junior Alexa Muffley for the team lead with three goals. Muffley and Lorentz each have eight points, one more than Moldenhauer.

"We had some moments of brilliance that we can continue to build on moving forward," Heberling said.